Automatic edge inking machines



March 12, 1963 K. c. J. WEBSTER AUTOMATIC EDGE INKING MACHINES FiledOct. 4, 1960 0 HZ eCA 0 mm 4 K W United States .Pat ent O This inventionrelates to improvements in machines for performing an operation on amarginal portion of an unattached shoe sole. The term shoe is usedherein generically as indicating outer footwear generally, and the termsole as including sole members such as insoles.

There is hereinafter described one convenient construction of machineprovided by the invention and illustrative thereof, the illustrativemachine being a machine for performing a finishing operation on amarginal portion of an unattached shoe sole, the machine being adaptedto apply a coating, specifically ink, to a marginal portion of a soleand of the general character disclosed in United Satates Letters PatentNo. 2,357,471 Jalbert.

The machine disclosed in said patent is provided with "a freelyrotatable inking roll and a pair of driven, frustoconical feed rollsrotatable about axes'each of which is inclined to the other and alsoinclined to the axis of the inking roll. The construction andarrangement of the .feed rolls and inking roll is such that a solepresented to ly satisfactory with many typesof soles but with a solehaving a pointed toe itoften occurs thata marginal portion in the toeregion is not operated on. This is due to "the fact that when a pointedtoe portion is fed past the inking roll, the sole is swung through arelatively large angle at a much faster rate than is the case when arounded toe portion is being operated upon and the momentum thusimparted to the heelward portion of the sole tends to carry the soleaway from the inking roll thereby leaving a marginal portion of the solewhich follows the toe end portion untreated by the inking roll.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an "improved machinefor applying a coating to a marginal portion of an attached shoe sole inwhich means is provided for avoiding the disadvantage above noted.

With this object particularly in mind the illustrative machine is amachine of the type disclosed in the above noted patent and having apair of driven feed rolls and a rotary inking roll so disposed that thesole presented to the machine is fed through the machine progressivelyin a curvilinear path; For soles having pointed toes the illustrativemachine is provided with feed rolls of com lparatively small diameter sothat such a sole presented to the machine may be gripped as close aspossible to its peripheral edge in the toe region asit is fed throughthe machine. The rolls are provided with conical faces to give themaximum amount of frictional gripping area. To

assist the small rolls in feeding the work the inking roll is driven ata peripheral speed substantially the same as that of the edge of a solein contact therewith.

As disclosed in the above patent the feed rolls are so inclinedrelatively to each otherthat there is a pronounced downward component offorce which tends to push the 'ingoing portion of the edge face of asole into contact 'with the inking roll. The illustrative machine isprovided .2 are comparatively small in diameter. .are arranged anddriven in a similar manner to'the feed 3,080,849 Patented- Mari 53 .andfollows its edge contour while exerting but little force thereagainst.As the toe end of the sole is being operated on by engagement with theinking roll, its heel end is swung upwardly wh'le the follower rollrides out of engagement with the sole and moves to a predeterminedposition to be engaged by the ingoing edge on the sole forepart (on theopposite side to that initially engaged by the roll) as the heel endmoves over its topmost position and starts to descend. The follower rollthus yieldably deceleratesthe swinging movement of the sole, the springaction being at a maximum when contact of the sole with the roll occursand decreasing as displacement of the roll increases as the solecontinues to be fed through the machine, the roll again following thecontour of the waist and side portions of the sole.

In order that the above and other of the various objects of theinvention may become more clear there will now be given, with referenceto the accompanying drawing, a more detailed description of theillustrative mamachine having some associated parts removed for the sakeof clarity; and,

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary end elevation showing the relation of the feedwheels to the inking roll.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is directed to a machine ofthe general character disclosed in the above noted United States PatentNo. 2,357,471 .and

only those parts that are new and those parts associated therewith willbe herein referred to, a more complete understanding of the wholemachine being had by reference to that patent.

- The illustrative machine is provided with a pair of feed rolls 2between which a sole S presented to the machine is gripped. Only one ofthe feed rolls is shown in FIG. 1 the other being removed for clarity.So that a sole having a pointed toe may be gripped as close as possibleto its peripheral edge in the toe region the rolls The feed rolls rolls10 and 12 referred to in said patent. The feed rolls 2 have conicalfaces between which the sole S is gripped in a substantially verticalplane. As disclosed in said patent and as seen in FIG. 2 the feed rollsare tilted away from each other so that only the lower Workengagingportions of the conical surfaces are substantially parallel and grip thework in the machine, the axes of the rolls also being so inc ined toeach other that the work is gripped in the region b indicated in FIG. 1,Le, in advance of the lowermost point of the feed rolls (considered inthe direction in which they are driven).

The machine is provided with an inking roll 4 mounted on a substantiallyhorizontal shaft 6 offset forwardly, in the direction of the workfeed,of the axes of the feed rolls 2. A frictiondisk 8 axially mounted forrotation on an arm 10 is urged by a,.=spring 12 against the periphery ofa friction disk 14 secured on the shaft 6. A

pulley 16 secured to the spindle of the feed roll 2 shown inthe drawingdrives a pulley 18, mounted on the spindle of the friction disk 8, bymeans of abelt 20 Thus the friction disk 8 is driven by rotation'of thefeed rolls the drives the inking roll 4 through frictional contact withthe friction disk 14 carried by the inking roll shaft 6. As the inkingroll is rotated it dips into a receptacle 22 which may contain ink 1maintained at a suitable level, the ink being applied by the roll to themarginal portion of a sole fed through the machine.

The sole S to which a coating of ink is to be app'ied around themarginal portion of its shank and forepart is presented to the machineas shown in the drawing, being gripped by the feed rolls 2 and fed in acurvilinear path in the direction of the arrow (FIG. 1) on the sole S bythe feed rolls 2 assisted by the driven inking roll 4 into engagementwith which the sole is urged by the feed rolls. The friction disks 8 and14 are of such diameter as to cause the inking roll 4 to be drivensubstantially at the same peripheral speed as the speed of feed of thesole.

A plate 24 fixed on the machine has adjustabfy mounted thereon a bracket26 which carries a pivotally mounted follower roll arm 28. The arm 28 isnormally urged clockwise about its pivot 30, by a spring 32, into araised position determined by engagement with an adjustable stop 34attached to the plate 24. The spring 32 has one end attached to the arm28 and its other end attached to a bracket 36 secured to the machine. Afollower roll 38 mounted on the outer end of the arm 28 is engaged bythe sole S as it is presented to the machine, the arm 28 yielding totake up the position shown in the drawing when the sole is positioned inthe machine. By reference to the drawing it will be seen that the arm 28is much more nearly parallel with the spring 32 in this position than inits raised position 28', the effect of the spring on the arm 28 in thisposition being much less than when the arm is raised. The arrangement issuch that the effect of the spring 32 on the arm 28 is negligible, beingsufficient only to hold the follower roll 38 in engagement with the soleedge so that when the machine is operated to feed the sole the roll 38merely follows the edge contour without materially affecting thedirection of feed.

As the toe end of the sole S is fed and operated on by the inking roll 4the sole is moved out of engagement with the follower roll 38 and swungin a clockwise direction, as seen in the drawing, through acomparatively large angle. When the sole moves out of engagement withthe roll 38 the arm 28 is thus freed for upward swinging movement to itsposition shown at 28', under the action of the spring 32, where it is inengagement with the stop 34.

The bracket 26 and stop 34 may be so adjusted to position the followerroll 38 that it is engaged by an edge portion of the sole as the sole isswung to the position shown at S. The roll 38 which is held in itselevated position under comparatively strong spring pressure iseffective to counteract the speed of swing of the sole but does notaffect the pressure of the sole against the inking roll 4. As the solecontinues to be fed, the arm 28 yields downwardly thereby reducing theeffective force of the spring, so that when the marginal side and shankof the sole following the toe is being operated on the roll 38 merelyfollows the contour as hereinbefore described.

From what has been said it will be seen that the roll 38 is effective tocatch a sole as it is swung about its toe end and thereby minimizes thepossibility of it being swung out of contact with the inking roll 4, theroll 38 being adjustable for position to catch soles having varyingshapes at the critical point of their swinging movement. The bracket '36is provided with a series of holes through any one of which one end ofthe spring 32 may be anchored so that the angle of the spring relativeto the arm 28 may be adjusted. Should the position of the follower roll38 require adjustment to accommodate the shape of the work beingoperated on the stop 34 and/ or the bracket 26 may be adjusted, thespring 32 being adjusted accordingly so that its effective force is notmaterially changed by adjustment of the follower roll position. Whereparticularly flimsy soles are to be operated on it may be desirable toreduce the force exerted by the spring 32 on the arm 28 by appropriateadjustment of the position of the spring 32.

It is a usual practice to use a sole margin ink having a a resin basewhich tends to cause the ink to stick to the inking roll unless the inkis sufficiently agitated and it has been found that by rotating theinking roll under power it has the additional advantage of agitating theink suflicientlyto prevent it sticking to the roll.

When soles having more rounded toes are to be operated on, the work maybe operated on more quickly by fitting larger feed rolls. For changingthe speed of the inking roll accordingly the spring 12 may bedisconnected from the arm 10 which is pivoted to the machine frame in aconvenient position so that the friction disk 8 may be swung away fromthe friction disk 14 without removing the belt 20. The friction disk 8may then be replaced with one having a suitable diameter. The simpledrive connection between the feed rolls 2 and the inking roll 4 enablesan operator to quickly and easily change one ink receptacle and inkingroll for another. To disable the action of the roll 38, the arm 28 maybe swung about its pivot 30, in an anticlockwise direction as seen inthe drawing, to an out of the way position when rounded toe work isbeing operated on.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a machine for operating on shoe soles, means for feeding a sole ina curvilinear path such that the sole edge is progressively engagedaround its contour with an operating tool, a member engageable with saidedge in advance of the tool and mounted for movement toward and awayfrom a predetermined position in the path of movement of the sole, andspring means urging said member toward said position with a forceincreasing progressively as the member approaches said position, saidmember being held away from said position by the sole as it is fedsubstantially lengthwise with the spring means exerting a relativelylight force insufficient to deflect the sole from its normal path, saidmember thereafter being moved to said position where the spring meansexerts a greater force when the sole is fed out of engagement with themember and is swung about its toe end whereupon the member in saidposition intercepts the swinging movement of the sole and is displacedby the sole against a relatively heavy force to decelerate the swingingmovement of the sole.

2. In a machine for operating on unattached soles, means for feeding asole in a curvilinear path such that the sole edge is progressivelyengaged around its contour with an operating tool, a follower rollengageable with said edge in advance of the tool, means mounting theroll for movement in the path of movement of the sole, and spring meansurging said roll into engagement with the sole edge and toward apredetermined position with a force increasing progressively as the rollapproaches said position, said roll being held away from said positionby the sole as it is fed substantially lengthwise with the spring meansexerting a relatively light force insufficient to deflect the sole fromits normal path, said roll thereafter being moved to said position wherethe spring means exerts its maximum force when the sole is swung aboutits toe end, whereupon the roll in said position intercepts the swingingmovement of the sole and is displaced against a relatively heavy forceto decelerate the swinging movement of the sole.

3. In a machine for operating on unattached soles, means for feeding asole edgewise in a curvilinear path such that the sole edge isprogressively engaged around its contour with an operating tool, afollower roll engage- .able with said edge in advance of the tool, anarm mounting the roll for movement in the path of movement of the soleas it is fed lengthwise, and spring means acting on said arm for urgingsaid roll into engagement with the sole edge and toward a predeterminedposition with a force increasing progressively as the roll is movedtoward said position, said roll being held away from said position bythe sole against a relatively light force as the sole is fedsubstantially lengthwise, said roll thereafter being moved to saidposition when the sole is fed out of engagement with the roll and isswung about its toe end, whereupon the roll intercepts the swingingmovement of the sole and is displaced against a relatively heavy forceto decelerate the swinging movement of the sole.

4. In a machine for operating on unattached soles, means for feeding asole edgewise in a curvilinear path such that the sole edge isprogressively engaged around its contour with an operating tool, afollower roll engageable with said edge in advance of the tool, an armmounting the roll for movement in the path of movement of the sole edge,an abutment limiting the movement of the arm for determining theposition to which the roll may be moved in one direction, and springmeans acting on said arm for urging said roll into engagement with thesole edge and toward said position with a force increasing progressivelyas the roll is moved toward said position, said roll being held awayfrom said position by the sole against a relatively light force as thesole is fed substantially lengthwise, said roll thereafter being movedto said position when the sole is fed out of engagement with the rolland is swung about its toe end, whereupon the roll intercepts theswinging movement of the sole and is displaced against a relativelyheavy force to decelerate the swinging movement of the sole.

5. In a machine for operating on unattached soles, means for feeding asole edgewise in a curvilinear path such that the sole edge isprogressively engaged around its contour with an operating tool, afollower roll engage able with said edge in advance of the tool, an armmounting the roll for movement in the path of movement of the sole,spring means acting on said arm for urging said roll into engagementwith the sole edge and toward a predetermined position with :a forceincreasing progressively as the roll is moved toward said position, andan adjustable abutment acting on said arm for varying said predeterminedposition thereby varying the maximum force exerted by said spring means,said roll being held away from said position by the sole against arelatively light force as the sole is fed substantially lengthwise, saidroll thereafter being moved to said position when the sole is fed out ofengagement with the roll and is swung about its toe end whereupon theroll intercepts the swinging movement of the sole and is displacedthereby against a relatively heavy force to decelerate the swingingmovement of the sole.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,166,482 Bata July 18, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS r 966,039 France Sept. 28,1950'

1. IN A MACHINE FOR OPERATING ON SHOE SOLES, MEANS FOR FEEDING A SOLE INA CURVILINEAR PATH SUCH THAT THE SOLE EDGE IS PROGRESSIVELY ENGAGEDAROUND ITS CONTOUR WITH AN OPERATING TOOL, A MEMBER ENGAGEABLE WITH SAIDEDGE IN ADVANCE OF THE TOOL AND MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT TOWARD AND AWAYFROM A PREDETERMINED POSITION IN THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE SOLE, ANDSPRING MEANS URGING SAID MEMBER TOWARD SAID POSITION WITH A FORCEINCREASING PROGRESSIVELY AS THE MEMBER APPROACHES SAID POSITION, SAIDMEMBER BEING HELD AWAY FROM SAID POSITION BY THE SOLE AS IT IS FEDSUBSTANTIALLY LENGTHWISE WITH THE SPRING MEANS EXERTING A RELATIVELYLIGHT FORCE INSUFFICIENT TO DEFLECT THE SOLE FROM ITS NORMAL PATH, SAIDMEMBER THEREAFTER BEING MOVED TO SAID POSITION WHERE THE SPRING MEANSEXERTS A GREATER FORCE WHEN THE SOLE IS FED OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THEMEMBER AND IS SWUNG ABOUT ITS TOE END WHEREUPON THE MEMBER IN SAIDPOSITION INTERCEPTS THE SWINGING MOVEMENT OF THE SOLE AND IS DISPLACEDBY THE SOLE AGAINST A RELATIVELY HEAVY FORCE TO DECELERATE THE SWINGINGMOVEMENT OF THE SOLE.